Jayhawk Lg. prospect reports

The
Haysville Heat commanded most of the headlines among Jayhawk League
clubs in 2011, but was hard pressed to stir up much interest in its
players from scouts.

Despite
winning a league title for the second straight season since the club
relocated from Lake Havasu, Ariz., and advancing farther in the
annual National Baseball Congress World Series in nearby Wichita than
any Jayhawk club (fourth place), the Heat failed to place a single
player in the top 10 on the accompanying list of the league’s best
prospects. Every other Jayhawk League team had at least one player.

The
Heat was shut out, even as righthander Zeb Sneed recorded the best
velocity in the league this summer by touching 97 mph, righthander
Dexter Spitsnogle posted a 0.00 ERA in league play and didn’t allow
a single earned run on the season, and lefthander Andrew Collazo
topped the league with 47 strikeouts. All three players were
acknowledged in the group from 11-20.
As
has been its custom since winning the NBC World Series title in 2007
with an older, more experienced club, the Heat fielded a
veteran-laden roster. Collazo dominated the Jayhawk League this
summer coming off his senior year at Oklahoma, but has exhausted his
college eligibility after finding no takers in the draft in June or
during the summer as a free agent. Spitsnogle has never been drafted
and returned to Nebraska this fall as a fifth-year college senior.
Sneed has largely avoided the scrutiny of scouts, as well, not so
much because he plays for a small college in remote Idaho but because
he has had great difficulty to date controlling his big fastball.
The
list of the Jayhawk League’s better prospects is dotted with rising
college sophomores and juniors, mostly from mainstream baseball
colleges. That may bode well for the future of most players on the
list below, but a veteran-laden Haysville club clearly proved once
again that experience counts for something and continued its
domination of the Jayhawk League.
In
the end, it was a bittersweet 2011 season for the Heat as Dick
“Chief” Twyman, the team’s owner and general manager since its
inception in 1993, died suddenly in January, stemming from
complications related to cancer. But Twyman, whose team went 612-119
in 18 seasons under his direction, was honored in August with
induction into the NBC Hall of Fame. Twyman’s son Rick, who has
been instrumental in the team’s success through the years as its
field manager, took over direction of the team following his father’s
passing and steered it to its latest triumph.FAST
FACTS
Year
League Established: 1976.States
Represented in League: Kansas.No.
of Teams in League: 6.Regular-Season
Champion: Haysville Heat.Post-Season
Champion: NONE. Derby Twins, Hays
Larks, Haysville Heat and Liberal Bee Jays all represented league in
National Baseball Congress World Series, Wichita, Kan.Teams,
PG CrossChecker Summer 50/Final Ranking:
No. 31 Haysville Heat; No. 47 Liberal Bee Jays.No.
1 Prospect, 2010 (per PG CrossChecker):
Charlie Lowell, lhp, El Dorado Broncos (Wichita State; drafted by
Marlins/6th round).First
2010 Player Selected, 2011 Draft:
Charlie Lowell, lhp, El Dorado Broncos (Wichita State; drafted by
Marlins/6th round).BATTING
LEADERS (League games only)
Batting
Average: Ryan Gebhart, of, El Dorado
Broncos (.382).Home
Runs: Aaron Cornell, of, Hays Larks;
Jonathan Ryan, of, Hays Larks (7).RBIs:
Will Hagel, 1b, Dodge City A’s (30).PITCHING
LEADERS (League games only)
Wins:
Several tied at 4.ERA:
Dexter Spitsnogle, rhp, Haysville Heat (0.00).Strikeouts:
Anthony Collazo, lhp, Haysville Heat (47).BEST
TOOLS
Best
Athlete: Micah Green, of, Liberal
Bee Jays.Best
Hitter: Aaron Cornell, of, Hays
Larks.Best
Power: Jon Ryan, of, Hays Larks.Fastest
Base Runner: Riley Good, of, Liberal
Bee Jays.Best
Defensive Player: Andrew Perez, ss,
Derby Twins.Best
Velocity: Zeb Sneed, rhp, Haysville
Heat.Best
Breaking Ball: Cale Elam, rhp,
Liberal Bee Jays.Best
Command: Josh Smith, lhp, Liberal
Bee Jays.TOP
20 PROSPECTS
1.
AARON CORNELL, of, Hays Larks (Oklahoma State/SO in 2012)SCOUTING
PROFILE: Cornell caused little buzz
among scouts as a freshman on a talent-laden junior-college team at
Eastern Oklahoma State, but clearly stepped to the forefront this
summer by hitting .336-7-26 in Jayhawk League games, while tying for
the league lead in homers. Overall, he hit .346-7-33 for the Larks.
While he displayed much better pop for Hays than he did in the spring
at Eastern Oklahoma, where he hit .389 but homered just twice, it was
his combination of speed, arm strength and all-around hitting ability
more than his power surge that propelled him prominently onto the
prospect landscape. At a lean, but wiry strong 5-foot-10 and 160
pounds, Cornell will hardly be mistaken for a true power hitter, and
his power stems mostly from a solid approach to hitting as much as
anything, though he had a knack for turning around some of the better
fastballs in the league. A lot of the balls he drove for doubles (17)
in the spring simply had more carry and left the park in the summer.
He was also capable of working deep counts, though often struggled
with breaking pitches. Cornell’s best tool is his raw speed, and it
is an asset at the plate, on the bases and in center field. He stole
16 bases without being caught in the spring, and swiped 10 more in
the summer, though his base-stealing pace slowed as he got worn down.
He excels defensively with his ability to get good jumps and run
balls down in the alleys. His arm strength is also an asset.
Cornell’s breakthrough summer landed him a late scholarship
opportunity to Oklahoma State and he is expected to take over in
center field for the Cowboys in 2012.

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